Sir Thomas Malory
Malory He was probably born sometime around 1405 (though some scholars have suggested an earlier date). He died in March of 1471, less than two years after completing his lengthy book. Twice elected to a seat in Parliament, he also accrued a long list of criminal charges during the 1450s, including burglary, rape, sheep stealing, and attempting to ambush the Duke of Buckingham. He escaped from jail on two occasions, once by fighting his way out with a variety of weapons and by swimming a moat. Malory was imprisoned at several locations in London, but he was occasionally out on bail. He was never brought to trial for the charges that had been levelled against him. In the 1460s he was at least once pardoned by King Henry VI, but more often, he was specifically excluded from pardon by both Henry VI and his rival and successor, Edward IV. It can be construed from comments Malory makes at the ends of sections of his narrative that he composed at least part of his work while in prison. William Oldys speculates that he may have been a priest,[1] based on Malory's description of himself in the colophon to Le Morte d'Arthur:
c. 1405 – 14 March 1471
Le Morte D'Arthur
Malory, Thomas, Janet Cowen, and John Lawlor. Le Morte D'Arthur. Volume II. London: Penguin Books, 1969.googlebooks Retrieved December 2, 2007
Christina Hardyment, Malory: The Life and Times of King Arthur's Chronicler, Harper Collins, 2005
Le Morte d'Arthur - summary of Malory's story
Malory He was probably born sometime around 1405 (though some scholars have suggested an earlier date). He died in March of 1471, less than two years after completing his lengthy book. Twice elected to a seat in Parliament, he also accrued a long list of criminal charges during the 1450s, including burglary, rape, sheep stealing, and attempting to ambush the Duke of Buckingham. He escaped from jail on two occasions, once by fighting his way out with a variety of weapons and by swimming a moat. Malory was imprisoned at several locations in London, but he was occasionally out on bail. He was never brought to trial for the charges that had been levelled against him. In the 1460s he was at least once pardoned by King Henry VI, but more often, he was specifically excluded from pardon by both Henry VI and his rival and successor, Edward IV. It can be construed from comments Malory makes at the ends of sections of his narrative that he composed at least part of his work while in prison. William Oldys speculates that he may have been a priest,[1] based on Malory's description of himself in the colophon to Le Morte d'Arthur:
c. 1405 – 14 March 1471
Le Morte D'Arthur
Malory, Thomas, Janet Cowen, and John Lawlor. Le Morte D'Arthur. Volume II. London: Penguin Books, 1969.googlebooks Retrieved December 2, 2007
Christina Hardyment, Malory: The Life and Times of King Arthur's Chronicler, Harper Collins, 2005
Le Morte d'Arthur - summary of Malory's story